Foundation garment



Feb. 1, 1938. w. KoPs FOUNDATION GARMENT Filed Oct. 29, 1956 2Sheets-Sheet l v INVENTOR WAL DE MAR ITOPS ATTO RN EY Feb. 1,' 1938; w.KoPs FOUNDATION GARMENT Filed Oct. 29, 1956 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTORMLDEMAR lfOPS ATTORNEY Patented Feb. 1, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICEFOUNDATION GARMENT poration of New York Application October 29,

4 Claims.

This invention relates to garments of the corset or foundation type andmore particularly to garments of this character adapted for use onrelatively stout figures or those requiring abdominal support.

A feature of the invention is the provision of a novel form of belt forproducing a desired uplift effect upon the abdomen. The construction issuch that the belt may be readily drawn downwardly to place a portionthereof well beneath the abdomen and a yielding upward and inward forceis created to lend a firm support to the abdomen. Moreover, thearrangement is such that all portions of the belt will lie flat againstthe figure and will not have an objectionable tendency to bulge awayfrom the body at any point.

Toward the foregoing ends, a specific feature of the invention is theemployment of an abdominal supporting belt formed of elastic materialhaving a varying elasticity from top to bottom thereof. The upperportion is adapted to exert a relatively easy, transverse, confiningforce while lower portions of the belt are adapted to exert increasinglygreater transverse confining forces. This belt, according to thepreferred construction, is permanently attached to the opposite sideedges of the front of the garment and is so arranged that if it is drawndownwardly at its center with respect to the front of the main garment,a substantial, upward force will be exerted.

Another feature of the garment is the provision of a readily closableopening at the front through which access may be had to the lowerportion of the abdominal belt for the purpose of drawing it downwardlybeneath the abdomen.

Other features and advantages of the invention will appear from thefollowing detailed description of an illustrative form of the same whichwill now be given in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, inwhich:

Fig. l is a view showing the garment from the front as applied to afigure.

Fig. 2 is a front View of the garment, off of the figure, with the frontopened up and laid back to expose inner parts of the garment.

' Fig. 3 is a view of the interior of the garment opened out.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged, vertical section through a portion of the frontof the garment along the line 4-4 of Figure 3, and

Fig. 5 is an enlarged, horizontal section through a portion of the frontof the garment along the line 5-5 of Figure 3.

1936, Serial No. 108,128

Referring now to the drawings, the improved garment comprises a mainbody-encircling member in the form of a series of inter-connectedsections, including a front section l0, side sections ilarly'joined tothe back I3 by means of a reinforced seam l5 and the back section is inturn connected with the side section l2 by means of a similar seam I6,Any suitable means may be provided for detachably connecting the freeedges of the front section It! and side section l2.

tached to the free edge of the front section and eyes l8 attached to thefree edge of the side section.

The back of the garment may assume any of a variety of different formsof construction but that illustrated has been found to be particularlysuited for the intended purposes. The back section may be formed eitherof a continuous piece of fabric or of a number of individual sectionsstitched together. At suitably spaced points a series of vertical stays[9, extending from substantially the upper edge to a point near thelower edge of the back section, are preferably I Such means may include,for example, hooks I! atemployed. These stays, it will be understood, 7

by a small section 2| of lining material, or the 7 like, which issuitably stitched to the main fabric of the back section and extendsupwardly an appropriate distance from the lower edge. Except for thesmall section 20, which is transversely or horizontally elastic, theback section is formed of strong, non-elastic material. The side sectionI! is largely formed of nonelastic material but the lower portion 22thereof, adjacent the edge of the back section, is formed of elasticmaterial. The rear edge of this elastic portion is substantiallystraight and is secured to the back section by the stitching I5. Theforward edge of the elastic portion is preferably curved and secured tothe non-elastic part of the side section by means of stitching 23,preferably reinforced by binding tape. A similar construction isprovided for the opposite side section l2, which includes an elasticportion 24 having its rear edge included in the seam l6 and its forwardedge secured by stitching 25 to the non-elastic portion of the sectionI2. Elastic portions 22 and 24 are arranged to stretch transversely oraround the body to allow'a suitable expansion and contraction of thegarment during movements of the body. At the seam l5 a pair of stays 26is provided, these extending from the upper edge of the garment to apoint slightly below the horizontal center-line. Similar stays 21 areprovided in the seam I6.

The construction of the front of the garment is somewhat'morecomplicated. At points intermediate the edges, a plurality of verticallydisposed stays 28 may be suitably employed. These stays extend from apoint slightly below the horizontal center-line of the garment to thelower edges of a pair of bust pockets 29 forming the upper portion ofthe frontsection of the garment. An elastic section 30, capable ofstretching transversely of the garment, is provided in the lowerleft-hand portion of the front section (Fig. 3), this being securedalong its outer edge to the tape which carries the hook elements I! andbeing secured by suitable stitching along the inner edge to thenon-elastic portion of the. front section. A similar, elastic section 3|is provided in the lower right-hand portion of the front section (Fig.3), this having its outer edge incorporated in the seam I4 and its inneredge secured to; the non-elastic portion of the front section bysuitable stitching, At the center of the front'section a reinforced pador lining 32 is provided between the pairs of stays 28. This reinforcingmember extends from a point adjacent the lower edges of the bust pocketsto the point indicated by the line 33 in Fig. 3. Additional, verticalstays 34 and 35 intermediate the stays 28 may be mounted in thereinforcing member or pad 32, these stays being of substantially thesame length as the stays 28 but being disposed at a somewhat lowerpoint.

Along the vertical center-line of the front" section of the garment itis slit or divided from. its lower edge to a point well above thehorizontal center-line. 'This is to enable the front of the garment tobe opened up to allow access to the abdominal support, to be laterdescribed. Any suitable means may be provided for securing the freeedges formed by the slit or divide. A hookless type of fastener isparticularly suited for this purpose. This may comprise a series offastening elements 36 along one edge of the slit, complementaryfastening elements 31 along the opposite edge of the slit and a rider 38adapted to bring about the interlocking engagement or release offastening elements, as desired. Anchored to the front section I!) at thepoint 39 is a relatively wide, flap member 49. The upper end '400 whichsecures the fastening elements 31.

Adjacent the lower end of the flap 40 an eye member 4! is provided andarranged to cooperate with a hook member 402 secured to the front secing tape 405 secured to the front section. These hooks and eyes serve tohold the flap 40 in position and prevent it from becoming caught in thehookless fastening means during operation of the rider.

The abdominal supporting belt which constitutes an important feature ofthe present invention will now be described. This comprises an elasticmember 4| having its left edge (Fig. 3) secured by suitable stitching 42to the free edge of the front section In. The opposite end of the memberis secured by stitching 43 to the right edge of the front section.Member 4| is formed in two parts joined togetheradjacent the verticalcenter-line of the member by suitable stitching 44. This is to enablethe elastic member to extend upwardly at a slight angle from this centerline toward both of the side edges of the front section. I

Each half of the member 4| is formed of a plurality of sections orportions of elastic material, the sections being of successivelyincreasing elasticity in a direction around the body. Thus, the uppersection 45 has a relatively easy stretch in the direction of its lengthwhile the intermediate section 46 has a somewhat firmer resistance tostretch and the lower section 4'! has a still firmer resistance tostretch. This arrangement is such that the lower portion of the beltapplies a substantial confining and uplift force: to the abdomen Whilethe upper portions of the belt exert successively decreasingconfiningand restraining forces. The variation in the tension of the variousportions of the belt has been found to create a very desirable action inconfining and supporting the abdomen. The sections or portions 45, 46and 41 may be formed as separate elastic bands or tapes stitchedtogether along their longitudinal edges, although they are preferablyformed as one integral band having the described, variable elasticproperties. In lieu of having each of the sections provided withdistinct stretch characteristics crease in resistance to stretch betweenthe several sections, there may be a gradual increase in the resistanceto stretch from the top to the bottom of the member. 7

Adjacent the vertical center line of the member 4| i. e., along the seam44, there is preferably provided a relatively stiff and broad staymember 48. This is retained within a pocket formed by a band 49 ofnon-elastic material stitched along its edges to the member 4| andextending from the upper edge of the member to its lower edge andpreferably extending around the loweredge and up on the opposite orouter face of the member a slight distance, as indicated at 50 in Fig.2.

This non-elastic band is preferably formed'of cushion the pressure ofthe stay against the body. To the upper edge of the member 4|, in. linewith the band 49, is secured an elastic band 5| whose upper end issecured by stitching 52 to the front section of the garment adjacent theupperend of the reinforcing member 32. Except for the stitching 52, theband 5| is free of the front section. So also the member 4! is free ofthe front section except for the lines of stitching 42 and 43.

Suitable garter attachments 53 may be provided at the lower edgeof thegarment, all or a portion of these being preferably provided with softpad members 54 formed of a plush-like material similar to that formingthe band 49.

relatively soft, plush-like fabric that serves to In applying thegarment to the body, the fastening means H and IB will first be fastenedwhile the hookless fastening means at the front of the garment will beleft open. The flap 40 will also be left free so that the lower edge ofthe member 4| may be readily grasped by the hand and drawn downwardly toa point beneath the abdomen. Upon release of the member 4|, the upwardelastic forces created by the several sections 45, 46 and 41, as well asthe band 5|, will produce a desirable uplift effect upon the abdomen.The hooks and eyes MM, 402, 403 and 404 may then be fastened and theslider 38 drawn downwardly to close the opening in the front of thegarment.

The variable elasticity of the sections of the belt 4| provides a verydesirable distribution of the forces applied to the abdomen. A very firmupward tension is applied beneath the abdomen while light pressures arecreated at higher points. If the belt were of uniform elasticitythroughout, an excessive and quite objectionable inward pressure wouldbe applied. The improved arrangement is such, furthermore, that allportions of the belt cling nicely to the body and no objectionablebulging takes place.

While an illustrative form of the invention has been described inconsiderable detail, it will be understood that numerous changes may bemade without departing from the general principles and scope of theinvention. The terms and expressions used herein have been used as termsofdescription and not of limitation.

What I claim is:

1. In a garment of the class described a body encircling memberincluding a front section, an abdominal belt secured to said frontsection, said belt being of substantially uniform width throughout itslength and comprising elastic material of progressively increasingelasticity in the direction of its length from top to bottom of the beltand being thereby arranged to produce a progressively increasing tensionaround the body from top to bottom of the belt, and means exerting anupward, yielding pull upon said belt adjacent its center.

2. In a garment of the class described a body encircling memberincluding a front section, an abdominal belt secured to said frontsection, said belt comprising elastic material of progressivelyincreasing elasticity in the direction of its length from top to bottomof the belt and being thereby arranged to produce a progressivelyincreasing tension around the body from top to bottom of the belt, and alongitudinally elastic tape connecting the center portion of said. beltwith a higher portion of said front section and arranged to apply anupward pull to said belt.

3. In a garment of the class described a body encircling memberincluding a front section, an abdominal belt secured to said frontsection, said belt comprising two sections of elastic material angleddownwardly from the side edges of said front section and united adjacentthe vertical center line of said front section, the elastic in said beltbeing of progressively increasing elasticity in the direction of itslength from top to bottom of the belt and being thereby arranged toproduce a progressively increasing tension around the body from theupper to the lower edge of the belt, and an elastic tape extending fromthe upper edge of said belt adjacent said vertical center line to ahigher point on said front section for exerting a yielding, upward pullupon said belt.

4; A garment of the class described comprising front, side and backsections connected to form a body encircling member, an abdominalsupporting belt mounted in said front section and extending from a pointadjacent one side of the garment to a point adjacent the other sidethereof, said belt having its ends secured to said front section, anelastic tapeconnecting a point on said belt with a higher point on saidfront section and tending to restore said belt to its normal position,and closable means enabling access to said belt through said frontsection whereby said belt may be drawn downwardly and said tapetensioned.

WALDEMAR KOPS.

